Apple Launches Upgraded AirTag with Enhanced Tracking Power and Lower Price
The new tracker boasts a more powerful chip and longer range, with deeper integration for finding items directly from an Apple Watch.
Apple‘s new version of its popular AirTag item locator hit official distributors in Spain on Monday, featuring significant upgrades including a 50% boost in search power, a 1.5x greater Bluetooth range, and a speaker that is 50% louder.
The device is priced at 35 euros for a single unit or 119 euros for a four-pack, bringing the individual cost down to 29.75 euros. These prices are lower than its predecessor, and Apple continues to offer free custom engraving through its website and the Apple Store app.
The California-based company is positioning the new AirTag as a tool for users to monitor their belongings with maximum efficiency while preserving anonymity. The device is specifically designed to discourage unwanted tracking.
“Since the launch of the AirTag in 2021, people from all over the world have shared stories about how they have managed to recover their suitcases, keys hidden under the sofa cushions, bicycles, bags and other lost objects,” the tech multinational said. “Another user, for example, recovered a lost suitcase containing a vital medication.”
The gadget now comes equipped with a second-generation ultra-wideband chip—the same one found in the iPhone 17, iPhone Air, Apple Watch Ultra 3, and Apple Watch Series 11 models—which provides visual, audible, and haptic feedback to locate items. For the first time, users can use ‘Precision Finding’ to locate an AirTag directly from their wrist with an Apple Watch Series 9 or later and the Apple Watch Ultra 2 or later. The device runs for over a year on a standard, user-replaceable battery, with the owner’s iPhone providing a notification when it needs to be changed.
When an AirTag is outside the range of its paired iPhone, the ‘Find My’ network can help locate it by leveraging the vast network of Apple devices. These devices detect the Bluetooth signal from a lost item and report its approximate location back to the owner privately and securely.
In a significant expansion of this ecosystem, Apple is collaborating with over 50 airlines, including Iberia, Vueling, and Lufthansa, to accept ‘Share Item Location’ links. According to SITA, an IT provider for the air transport industry, airlines report that using this feature has helped reduce baggage delays by 26% and cases of unrecoverable luggage by 90%.
Access to shared location data is restricted to authorized personnel via a secure Apple Account or partner authentication. The location sharing is deactivated as soon as the user retrieves the item, can be turned off by the owner at any time, and automatically deactivates after seven days.
Apple emphasized the device’s privacy features, noting that the AirTag does not store location data or history. All communication with the Find My network is protected with end-to-end encryption, ensuring that only the owner of a device can access its location data. Not even Apple knows the identity or location of the devices that help find it.
“The new AirTag, which has been designed exclusively to locate objects and not people or pets, incorporates a series of industry-pioneering security measures against unwanted tracking, such as cross-platform alerts and unique Bluetooth identifiers that rotate frequently,” the company added. The new model, which is the same size as the previous version, is also made with 85% recycled plastic in its casing, and its packaging is made from 100% fiber-based, easily recyclable paper.
